We Made It!

I'm laying on the floor of our new home in Fairbanks, Alaska at about 11:30 pm and I can still see across the street  and the trees in the yard two doors down from us.  The Land of the Midnight Sun is already working it's magic on me.   I'll be getting tired soon, because it will be completely dark soon.  I'm going to be in big trouble when the sun doesn't set at all!  Extra sun for me means extra energy- not a bad problem to have, but does cause lack of sleep! :)

So- you may ask why I'm on the floor and not at a desk or table or some other more comfortable piece of furniture??  I wish I could be sitting on something like that, but it's a little difficult when the trailer that you were hauling most of your worldly possessions broke down about 4 hours on the other side of the border in Canada!!  I didn't possibly think we could get any more drama last week than we had already had but we sure did!

As we were leaving Haines Junction, Yukon Territory, Jeff looked in the passenger side mirror an asked me if the mirror was bouncing up and down or if indeed it was the tire on the trailer wobbling back and forth like it was just going to fall off.  I confirmed his suspicions and we stopped.  The axel hadn't broken (yet) but the hub of the axel had (it's kind of like a "cap" that goes on the exposed outside part of the axel- it keeps things stable.  We drove to the nearest mechanic and ended up leaving it, because people typically don't keep those parts on hand.  So tomorrow my amazing husband and a friend of our making the trip to bring it home.  

Second thing that happened that day.  We had no cell service the majority of our time in Canada and had none until we arrived in Tok, Alaska.  We were close to 48 hours of no communication with our family and knew they could be worried about us.  As I try to make the phone call, I was re-routed to the "fraud department".  I passed the phone off to Jeff, as it's really his phone.  They had shut our phone off while in Canada- it's like a credit card- if they see "odd" activity, they shut it off.  So- naturally, they begin to ask Jeff "security" questions.  Not really a big deal UNTIL they ask him where he was living when he received his first social security card!! Some people may be able to answer this, but Jeff, during his childhoold, moved almost every year.  He couldn't answer it and they refused to turn the phone on!!!  So- they told him that they were going to investigate him for fraud- really???  It was a mess.  He ended up having to fax receipts of hotel stays/ fuel stops as well as proof of i.d. before they turned the phone on.  And in the end, they did apologize to us not only for refusing to turn the phone on, but for being so rude.  Sooo- if you're (Rocksee!!) traveling through Canada remember to tell your cell provider so they don't shut you off!!  We had told our bank what we were doing and had no problems with our cards getting shut off.  

It was quite the adventure and we had a lot more problems than anticipated, but obviously, the Lord was taking care of us.  Had we driven any further on that wheel- it would have broke the axel and it potentially could have caused an accident.  We just "happened" to catch it right after it happened according to the mechanic.  Furthermore-  we were beginning to drive a stretch of the Alcan where it is pretty desolate, and we discovered it less than two miles out of town and were able to turn around and go back.  God is good and I am so thankful for His protection.

It is good to be home.  The weather has been gorgeous and the day we arrived we could see Denali (Mt. McKinley) clearly!  That was quite a greeting for us!  We have spent time this weekend with close friends and I have more catching up to do this week- I can't wait!  

We didn't have a place to live yet when we left Tulsa.  The back up plan was to stay with friends, and hope to find a place quickly.  We weren't worried about it, because we knew that God would provide.  And indeed He did.  Before we left, we had inquired about a home that we had seen on Craig's list and the night we left, we received a response back saying that the home was available but that the owners knew our good friends (the ones we were going to stay with!) AND that he went to our church up here!!  We got his email as we were loading the car up, so we didn't get a chance to respond.  Well- our crazy week began and in the midst of it, I forgot all about his email.  When we arrive, my friend Kim tells me that there is a couple who wants to rent us their house and it was available almost immediately!! It was this same guy and come to find out- they had held it for us all week and put other people off who wanted to rent the house.  Long story short- the house is great- neighborhood is awesome- the view is amazing (Birch Hill is the view- for those not familiar with Fairbanks, it's the major local cross country ski area) and NO neighbors behind me!! Fenced in back yard for the kids and the dog and a very nice family living next door.  And all appliances were provided.  No worries here- the Lord had it covered for us. 

Well- it's past midnight and finally completely dark.  Time for bed.  The sun will be up in just a few hours- hopefully the kids won't wake with it! And oh shoot- I forgot to check Jada!! Better go!